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Leadership Team
Staff
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Residential Team
Amy Au has a bachelor’s degree in education from Texas Christian University where her focus was elementary and special education. Amy is currently pursuing a master's degree in counseling psychology from the Seattle School of Theology and Psychology. Amy worked for Cru International in East Asia for seventeen years. As a senior staff member, she trained and evaluated staff, focusing on leadership development and issues related to diversity and cultural competency. She currently works as a case manager for Bridge of Hope serving single mothers and their children who are at risk of homelessness. Through her organization Untold to Rewritten, Amy provides trauma informed narrative therapy to individuals in the community .
Amy was the inaugural assistant director for Resilience Rising's grand opening in Colorado and then fulfilled a contracted role as RR's staff care professional. Amy helps staff to mitigate the impact of vicarious trauma through the provision of insight and nurturing around trauma stewardship. She has a heart for helping women grow, recover, and thrive through exploring how their past and present overlap.
Amy Au, MACP candidate
Staff Wellness Coach
Mentoring Team
Lydia van der Vorst, BSW
Mentor
Lydia van der Vorst has a bachelor’s degree in social work from Metropolitan State University of Denver. She has a long history of volunteer work including mentoring, gardening, and outreach with a particular passion for supporting youth. She currently works with the elderly population in assisted living.
Lydia was a residential staff at Resilience Rising's residential childcare facility in Colorado and has continued to mentor RR alumnae. An avid activist for issues of social justice, she frequently attended rallies with RR residents to advocate for the rights of women, BIPOC and LGBTQ communities, and the environment.
Elyssa Lewis has a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Metropolitan State University of Denver and a master’s degree in interdisciplinary humanities and social thought from New York University. Driven by a passion for human rights and social justice, Elyssa has volunteered alongside Habitat for Humanity in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico and worked as a Girl Scouts counselor in the Yup'ik villages of rural Alaska. Elyssa is a poet, musician, and artist from Colorado whose work has been published in academic journals and poetry magazines. Elyssa currently works in hospice, bringing her nurturing, compassionate energy to the end of life process.
Elyssa was a lead residential staff and interim assistant director at Resilience Rising's residential childcare facility in Colorado and has continued to mentor RR alumnae. Having always been drawn to the particular challenges facing women and girls in contemporary society, Elyssa's employment with Resilience Rising results from years of intuition-led preparation.
Elyssa Lewis, MA
Mentor
Esther Hernandez
Lead Residential Supervisor, Esther Hernandez, has been a consistent force on the RR team. Her ability to connect art to healing is an asset. Esther is currently a resident artist at Redline, a nonprofit contemporary art center that fosters education and engagement between artists and communities to create positive social change. She is also teaching high school students at the Center for Visual Art at Metropolitan State University; this summer internship engages the next generation in the evolving cultural capitol of Denver. Esther's artistic soul makes her real and accessible to the youth at Resilience Rising. And because of her consistency and commitment, the youth are able to recognize her as a genuine, stable presence in their lives.
101 S Topanga Canyon Blvd, PO Box 805, Topanga, CA 90290-9998
(310) 488-8195